Improvement in carbureters



A) F. H. BRAUN. Carbureters. No. 128,3 m 'Patentedjune 25,1872.

PATENT FFCE.

AUGUSTUS F. H. BRAUN, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

IMPROVEMENT IN CARBURETERS.V

Specification forming part of Letters Patent` No. 128,356, dated June 25, 1872.

SPECIFICATION.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, AUGUSTUS F. H. BRAUN, of San Francisco, in the county of San Francisco and State of California, have invented an Improvement in Carbureters for Carbureting Illuminating and other Gas; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description of the saine, reference being had to the accompanying drawing and to the letters of reference marked thereon.

This invention relates principally to that class of machines which are employed for carbureting and enriching illuminating-gas 5 and consists mainly in the construction and arrangement of a series of pipes and valves for regulating the supply of gas and conveying it to and from the hy drocarbon-chamber,'and to the use of wicks and tubes which are placed in the carbureter in a novel manner, so that the hydrocarbon will be drawn upward by capillary attraction, and the gas in passing through the wicks become well and uniformly carbureted, as will hereinafter more fully appear.

In the drawing, Figure 1 represents a sectional elevation taken through the line x y, Fig. 3, showing the wicks, tubes, pipes, and cocks or valves in position. Fig. 2 is a plan with the top removed, showing the interior of the carbureter. Fig. 3 represents an end sectional elevation of a carbureter embodying my improvements.

Similar letters indicate like parts in each of the figures.

To enable others skilled in the art or science to which my invention most nearly appertains to make and use the same, I will now proceed to describe fully its construction and the manner of operation.

It is a well-known fact that many diiculties have heretofore been experienced in the use of carbureters for commercial gas, chiefly among which it would appear is the great tendency of surcharging or over-impregnat- 'ing the gas, whereby it becomes too greatly .enriched by the hydrocarbon in its passage.

through the carbureter and is carried along in this condition to the burner, and, on turning the cock and applying a match thereto, instead of an upward iiame of gas, a down- 4A, extends from end to end of it.

ward stream of fire is had, causing consternation and danger; but when it is known that if the gas be well and uniformly carbureted this danger is avoided, and the light thus being intensified does not require a size of flame to produce a given quantity of light due to the standard size of the burner employed, the value of this invention will be at once perceived.

I construct my carbureter, preferably oblong in shape, with square ends for convenience, and a horizontal partition or diaphragm, Elongated tubes B B are constructed in the diaphragm and extend downward to near the bottom of the hydrocarbon-chamber, while their upper ends are above the horizontal plane of the diaphragm, so that any vapor which condenses and accumulates on the surface may be retained and drawn ol' by a cock, (not shown.) The lower compartment is 4filled with any suitable hydrocarbon liquid by means of a feed-pipe,- C, which extends down through the diaphragm A from the top of the machine. A cock, D, serves to show when the chamber is sufficiently full, and another cock, E, is employed to discharge any sediment or clean out the chamber. Within the upper chamber a series of rods, F, extend through from end to end, and serverto support the wicks F of the brous material and hold them in the peculiar position required. Transverse rods G G extend from the sides to near the center, where they are bent downward, so as to separate the wicks and form the curve or fold in the center, shown at Figs. 2 and 3.

The fibrous material is arranged as follows: From each side of the upper chamber a number of folds of the material are carried up over the outer rods, thence passing downward through the tubes B into the lower compartment. Similar folds or wicks arising from this compartment passup through the tubes parallel with those first described; thence, extending over the middle bars F, they drop down between, so as to form a sort of curve or fold. This fold and the outside portions of the rst-described piece reach nearly to the ioor or diaphragm A, while the parts which pass down through the openings B extend to near the bottom of the carbureter, in which By this arrangement no more of the liquidl will be drawn up than just enough to saturate the4 material, and there will be none tof overcharge the gas so that it will become too greatly enriched by the hydrocarbon and condense in the pipes, as no contact of the gas is had with the hydrocarbon, except through the medium of the wicks above the diaphragm.

The gas is brought to the machine by a pipe, I, which-opens into a horizontal pipe, J, extending along above the carbureter to the ends, where it is bent downward, so as to allow each end to enter the carbureter just above the diaphragm. The pipe J is provided with three cocks, K, L, and M. Two of these cocks are placed outside the induction. and eduction pipes-that is, between them and the points where the pipe J enters the chamber. These cocks are each provided with a lever, N, and the upper ends are united by rods O, so that when the handle P is turned all the cocks will be operated simultaneously. The two outside cocks K and M are opened or closed at the same time, and the cock L will be closed when the others are open, or vice versa.

The operation of this machine is as follows: The gas arriving at the carbureter through the pipe I the lever P will be moved so as to throw the cocks K and M open and close the cock L. This causes the gas to flow along the pipe J to the point where it enters the carbureter at Q. Within the chamber is a wire-gauze, R, so arranged that the gas will be thoroughly distributed as it enters. kIt

then passes through and between the longitudinal folds of the fibrous material arranged as before described, taking up a sufficient quantity of the hydrocarbon vapor to enrich it, so as to cause it to give a very brilliant light. It then passes out of the chamber at S, and up through the pipe J to the eductionpipe T.

In case of accident, or if at any time it should be found that the gas is becoming too greatly charged, the lever P can be moved to the other side, thus closing the cocks K and M and opening the cock L. This causes the gas to pass directly from the pipe I to the pipe T without entering the carbureter.

By this arrangement I have complete control over the current of gas and can direct itV into the carbureter or pipes at will. Also, by the arrangement of the fibrous material and the tubes the hydrocarbon will not be drawn up in sufficient quantity to drip oil' and fall upon the diaphragm.

I do not claim to be the first to employ a system of wells extending nearly to the bottom of the case for the purpose of drawing oil from the lower and heavier strata, for this feature I know is old; but

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is i l. The combination of the horizontal partition A, having the wells B extending nearly to the bottom of the case, with the wicks arranged upon the wires F, as shown, for'the purpose of drawing the oil in limited quantities from the. bottom of the wells, as described.

2. The combination of the operating-lever P with the connecting-rods, cocks K L M, and pipes J, I, and T, as described.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal.

AUGUSTUS F. H. BRAUN. [L s] Witnesses:

C. W. M. SMITH, H. S. TLBBEY. 

